By Nancy Mehlert, MS
You most likely have heard about high fructose corn sugar (a.k.a. HFCS) which is the most processed form of fructose, a simple sugar, and the most damaging to your health. Manufacturers make HFCS with corn starch and add it to many processed foods such as fast foods, soda, ice creams and condiments like ketchup and pickle relish. On labels it may be called high fructose corn sugar, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup or fructose.
This is one of the most harmful substances for human health and we encourage you to audit your pantry, refrigerator and grocery cart to ensure you and your family are not consuming it.
Here’s why:
- Many scientists are suggesting that this processed fructose is a contributing factor to the obesity epidemic.
- Processed fructose feeds pathogenic gut bacteria and disrupts a healthy microbial balance.
- Fructose does not stimulate insulin production in the blood stream like other sugars, such as glucose, but goes directly to the liver for handling. As a result, leptin, an appetite suppressing hormone is never released to inform you that you are full. As a result, you remain hungry, craving and unsatisfied.
- The output of fructose being processed in the liver is uric acid, known to be a contributor to gout and heart disease.
Step by step, be well and stay well by choosing well.